Peers to debate donations law changes after Reform’s £72m windfall

Peers to debate donations law changes after Reform's £72m windfall. Farage says £72m donations are compliant 'with the law today'Published16 hours agoDonations law changes to be debated after Reform's £72m windfallPublished23 hours agoWill record donations to Reform go down as a moment of political change?

What happened

If I am leaving you with the impression that these donations to Reform, and in particular their scale, are transforming the debates at Westminster about politics and money, well – they are. Image source, EPAImage caption, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage pictured during the party's annual party conference earlier this monthByChris MasonPolitical editorPublished15 September 2026, 00:51 BSTThe £72m heading towards Reform UK's coffers from two British billionaires is transforming the debate at Westminster about politics and money.

"That is a political, perhaps moral argument, but not a legal one – if the government changes the law, the law of the land will have changed, possibly with consequences for whether those donations are legal. Figure caption, Farage: Donations to Reform '100% compliant with the law today'We don't know, because Reform won't tell us, precisely when the two men relocated to the UK. Figure caption, What you need to know about the mega donations to Reform UKGet in touchDo you have any comments or questions about this story?

Skip to main contentSkip to navigationSkip to key eventsPolitics live with Andrew SparrowPoliticsFarage says a Reform UK government would stop unions funding Labour if they block £72m donations – UK politics liveParty leader claims proposed new retrospective laws are unfair and Reform would retaliate with a crackdown on union funding if elected LIVE Updated 10m agoAndrew SparrowTue 15 Sep 2026 05. 09 EDTShareKey events10m agoReynolds defends asylum seekers being housed in small Oxfordshire village as residents hold symbolic vote32m agoHow Rayner mocked Streeting's failed bid for Labour leadership in speech at TUC dinner1h agoReynolds says people should not get 'hyperbolic' about risks posed by AI1h agoJonathan Reynolds says it's wrong to view union donations to Labour as equivalent to billionaire donations to Reform UK2h agoLouise Haigh says UK must heed warnings from AI experts2h agoFarage says a Reform UK government would stop unions funding Labour if they block £72m donations Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage speaking during the Reform UK party conference, in Birmingham, Britain earlier this month on 5 September, 2026.

The wider picture

Ministers already think that the new laws on political donations, as set out in the version of the representation of the people bill which left the Commons earlier this month, will be enough to block some or all of the donations worth £72m to Reform UK announced at the weekend. But they are still planning further amendments to the legislation, when peers debate their own amendments to the bill, to make the restrictions even tighter.

The £72m donations to Reform UK have prompted a bit of a rethink, and union leaders are expected to issue a statement later. Asked about claims that trade unions donations to Labour are similar to single, multi-million pound donations to Reform UK from cryptocurrency billionaires (see 9. The government is seeking to change the law on donations to UK political parties from British expats. The government is planning to tighten residency rules for people giving money to political parties, to ensure that those making significant donations live in the UK.

But the government has been planning a change in the law for months, which would limit donations from Brits abroad to £100,000 each per year, backdated to 25 March this year. The reason for that date, 25 March, ministers argue, is that is the day a review by the retired civil servant Philip Rycroft was published,, external the first recommendation of which was that there should be "an annual cap on political donations from British voters living abroad".

What has been reported

Fast forward to the last few days and along come these colossal donations from Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne, two cryptocurrency billionaires who until recently lived in Hong Kong and Thailand respectively. In his first interview since these donations became public, Nigel Farage told me unequivocally that the money from both men was legal under the law as it stands now. "Both these donations are 100% compliant with the law today, of that there is no question whatsoever," Farage told me.

"Retrospectively declaring donations illegal – that simply cannot be," he pressed on, adding "you cannot confiscate money that has been given legally within the law as it stands. Do Delo and Harborne clear them, and if they don't, for how long could that delay Reform getting hold of their vast sums of money? The Reform UK leader has threatened that a Reform government would cut off party funding from the trades unions if the government went ahead with trying to limit his capacity to raise money from these two donors.

Published1 day agoWho is Reform donor and crypto billionaire Ben Delo? Published2 days agoSo, there are loads of questions that tumble towards us after these donations.

What happens next

Should there be a limit on what donors based in the UK can give per year, as well as a cap on donations from Brits abroad? Some argue this would compel parties to find their funding via lots of small donations rather than fewer giant ones. Photograph: Temilade Adelaja/ReutersView image in fullscreenReform UK party leader Nigel Farage speaking during the Reform UK party conference, in Birmingham, Britain earlier this month on 5 September, 2026. Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, has hit back.

If the crackdown goes ahead, Reform UK will stop Labour getting money from the trade unions if it wins the next election, he says. 30am explaining the TUC’s revised position on how party funding laws should be reformed. He told Times Radio: When we talk, or people talk about union donations, that is not one entity.

The report has been compiled by The Daily Waves using information reported across bbc.co.uk, theguardian.com. Details are presented according to the information available at the time of publication and may change as authorities, organisers or other relevant parties provide updates.